Why do some Taylor models have pickguards and others do not?
Pickguards certainly aren’t necessary, but we’ve seen some guitars that were pretty badly battered because they didn’t have them. Hard-strumming and energetic movement during performance can lead to all sorts of scrapes, scratches, and gouges that might not occur at other times. But the simplest reasons we can cite for putting pickguards on most of our guitars are – tradition and aesthetics. Most people expect pickguards on their guitars, and, frankly, some models look funny without them. Also, because Taylor guitars are versatile (i.e. capable of accommodating different playing styles), putting pickguards on them ensures that their woods and finishes will be protected no matter how delicately or aggressively they’re played. We don’t put pickguards on our 900 Series guitars because not doing so maintains the theme- unique to that series – of “no plastic anywhere on the guitar.” That feature has made the 900 Series especially attractive to “purists,” and to others who simply like the id